After being away in Japan with no cell phone connections for over two weeks have been an interesting experience for me. I have been traveling to various cities and centers and now that I am back I find not that easy to be here in Istanbul totally yet. This may take a few days. May be partly due to the jet-lag, my soul might need to catch up with my body which seems to be traveling at a faster pace. The traveling schedule was also quite full which in a way required me to be in Japan totally with mind, body and soul. I am trying to digest what I really experienced. There was a lot about spirituality, a lot about friendship and connecting with Japan and Japanese people. Once again I felt I was deeply connected with this land of Islands.
My first trip to Japan was last year, and everything had felt strangely familiar during that trip also. This time there is no doubt. With people I meet in Japan, I kept on having this lovely strange feeling of meeting old acquaintances, in every city I went to, one after the other. I do not question it any more, I just welcome and appreciate.
This time in Japan I had the opportunity to visit many temples and shrines in different parts of the country. Tokyo was a lot less chaotic than I expected. Yokohama was really fresh like the breeze called Hamakaze Yokohama is famous for.
There is an amazing attention to details in Japan. People carry this energy of loving whatever that they are doing. The love may not come naturally, but they seem to be able to add that love and care that seems to make a great difference.
In general there are also amazing similarities between the Turkish and the Japanese cultures. The futon beds on the floor remind me of the floor-beds I have seen in rural areas all around Turkey. Use of home slippers is quite a common tradition in Turkey as well as in Japan. And there are many more similarities. Yet, I could not help but think that there is a lot more to learn about dedication, respect, care and attention to life, to people and to details in Japan.
I believe I still need to allow some time to let my soul to completely arrive back home. So this week I will share more pictures with you than words, hoping that they speak louder.
My first trip to Japan was last year, and everything had felt strangely familiar during that trip also. This time there is no doubt. With people I meet in Japan, I kept on having this lovely strange feeling of meeting old acquaintances, in every city I went to, one after the other. I do not question it any more, I just welcome and appreciate.
This time in Japan I had the opportunity to visit many temples and shrines in different parts of the country. Tokyo was a lot less chaotic than I expected. Yokohama was really fresh like the breeze called Hamakaze Yokohama is famous for.
There is an amazing attention to details in Japan. People carry this energy of loving whatever that they are doing. The love may not come naturally, but they seem to be able to add that love and care that seems to make a great difference.
In general there are also amazing similarities between the Turkish and the Japanese cultures. The futon beds on the floor remind me of the floor-beds I have seen in rural areas all around Turkey. Use of home slippers is quite a common tradition in Turkey as well as in Japan. And there are many more similarities. Yet, I could not help but think that there is a lot more to learn about dedication, respect, care and attention to life, to people and to details in Japan.
I believe I still need to allow some time to let my soul to completely arrive back home. So this week I will share more pictures with you than words, hoping that they speak louder.
I send my love to you all and hope to see you soon.
Zeynep
Zeynep
